086
INFO
FORMATPS4
ETAOUTNOW
PUBCODEMASTERS
DEVCODEMASTERSGRID
Grid looked in the mirror and did behold its nemesis...
F
or those in the know, the return of
Grid is a very exciting prospect. The
thought of all that frantic, spectacular,
close-contact racing purring away on
PlayStation 4 hardware has been almost too
tasty to imagine. Picture it: cool licensed cars,
tarmac tracks, tyre walls and tyre smoke, and
heavy impacts showing off the latest damage
tech of the incredible Ego engine. Right?
Well, about that...The premise is unchanged and easy to love. If
you’re bored of sliding off into gravel traps all day
long in more serious racing games, Grid offers a
more arcadey alternative to the likes of Assetto
Corsa. The handling is still based on real-world
physics, yet tweaked to allow for scandalous
power slides, late-braking overtaking manoeuvres,
and ‘rubbing is racing’ competition which lets you
trade paint without forcing you into a retirement
because you cracked a wing mirror.
As a gamey yet serious-ish racer, new Grid is
a massive success, providing a wealth of confetti-
covered events spread over five main categories,
with some extra invitationals thrown in for
good measure. All of this can be played with
just basic knowledge of left, right, accelerate,
and brake, which is very refreshing indeed. The
courses are a mixture of real-world raceways, city
street circuits, and winding Japanese mountainroads, all of which look
absolutely stunning. Sixteen-
car races are a sight to behold,
and there’s plenty of tyre
smoke, spinning rivals, and
occasionally a flipping car to be
seen as you muscle your way to
first position.
If that all sounds fun, then
you’re right, it is. As a 2019
racing game purchase –
especially if you have a PS4
Pro that runs it at an exquisite
60fps compared to the standard
PS4’s 30fps – it’s an obvious
recommendation, as there’s
little else of this incredible
quality to rival it. The problem
comes when you look at this
brand-new game in the context
of its predecessors.
Playing the original game
afterplayingthisis likehavingyour eyes opened to a decade
of downgrading. 2008’s Race
Driver Grid feels faster, and
every single aspect of the
over-the-top gameplay feels
a few notches up from this
new game. While new Grid’s
damage system still features
scratches, detachable bodywork,
and crumple damage, it’s
nowhere near as realistic or
impressive as the tech of 11
years ago. The same goes for
the fallible AI, which used to
regularly end up careening
through the air in a cascade
of physics objects; in new
Grid it usually just slides off
into the sand, and even in big
crashes wheels never detach.
It’s noticeably less exciting and
undoubtedly less fun. You could
easilyarguethatmanufacturersSLIGHT RETURN @catgonecrazy“AS A GAMEY YET
SERIOUS-ISH RACER, NEW
GRID IS A MASSIVE SUCCESS.”
Fireworks at the finish
are just one of the
superb atmospheric
touches. It’s race day!